Sign



F. W. GAY.

I SIGN. APPLICATION FILED AUGJS, 1919.

1,362,284, Patented Dec. 14, 1920.

FRAZER W. GAY, 0F NEWARK, NEW JERSEY.

SIGN.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Dec. 14, 1920.

Application filed August 15, 1919. Serial No. 317,837.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, FRAZER W. GAY, a citizen of the United States, residing at Newark, in the county of Essex and State of New Jersey, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Signs; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, and to characters of reference marked thereon, which form a part of this specification.

The present invention has reference, generally, to improvements in illuminated signs, advertising devices and devices of a similar nature; and the invention relates, more particularly, to a novel, cheap and simple construction of illuminated and self-luminous sign or the like.

The invention has for its principal object to provide a sign or the like the characters or devices of which are coated with a phosphorescent material capable of being actuated by exposure to light to produce a luminosity thereof, rendering the same easily visible in darkness, and combining therewith a light source adapted to flood the sign with light at intermittent periods, not only for the purpose of rendering the sign visible in the reflected light, but at the same time actuating the phosphorescent material to store the light therein for rendering the sign luminous when the light from the source is 4 cut off,

Another object of the present invention is to provide in combination with the sign having the above stated characteristics a transparent screen interposed between the light source and said sign, said screen to carry an additional sign or device only visible when illuminated by light from said ,source, and through which the luminous then finally embodied in the appended claims.

The invention is clearly illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which F lgure 1 is a face view of a sign illustrat- 111g one embodiment of the principles of my present lnvention.

Fig.2 1s a face view of a sign illustrating a modlfied structure embodying the principles of my present invention, in which a transparent screen is employed carrying a slgn or device visible when exposed to light rays; Flg. 3 is a face view of said modified structure illustrating the visibility ofv the luminous main sign through said screen when external light rays are cut OH"; and Flg. 4 is a transverse section, taken on line 4-4 in said Fig. 2, the same being drawn on an enlarged scale.

Similar characters of reference are employed in the above described views, to insame self-luminous when said exposure to I light rays is discontinued. This material may be crystalline phosphorescent zinc sulfid or other similar phosphorescent sulfid or said circuit, if desired, an automatic time switch device 5, which will serve to turn on and off the lamps 3 at suitable intervals, and

intermittently if desired.

the characters or devices may be easilyvisible and readable in the darkness, When the automatic time control switch 5 is employed it is set so'that the light of the lamps willnot be interrupted for a period so long that the phosphorescent material will entirely lose its glowing properties, and consequently intermittent intervals,- of proper time duration, providing alternate light and darkness will not only intermittently actuate the selfluminous qualities of the sign, but will also provide a novel and attractive device due to the alternated characters of its illumination.

I have mentioned a cheap phosphorescent material as the preparation with which the characters or devices 2 are treated, but I do not wish to limit myself exclusively to the use of such material alone, since I may also employ for the purpose a radium charged phosphorescent material as wel1,

' either alone or in combination with an area of the ordinary phosphorescent material so that if the sign loses its luminosity from the light actuated material, it will still be rendered glowing or visible'by reason of the radio activity due to the presence of the radium element.

Referring now more particularly to Figs. 2 m4 inclusiveof the drawi'n l have illustrated therein a slight modification of the sign above described. in this modified structure I employ the si board or base 1 upon which are mounted 533 characters or devices 2 treated with the phosphorescent material or similar substance. The face of the sign board or base 1? is painted or otherwise colored to provide a back-ground 6 adapted to conform in color to the color of the treated characters or devices 2, when the latter are subjected to illumination by external light.

Supported in front of and in suitableproximity to said sign board or-base 1 are the electric lamps 3. Inter-posed between the face of said sign board or base 1 with its treated characters or devices 2 and the lamps 3 is atransparent screen 7, preferably in the form of a meshor netting. Painted upon said screen 7 are characters or devices 8 which become easily visible when the lamps 3 are turned on to illuminate the face of said screen, by reason of their reflection of such external lights, but which become invisible when the lamps 3 are turned 05 and light shines through the screen from hehind. The purpose of having the background 6 conform in color to the color of the characters or devices 2 is to prevent any optic confusion or in other words to prevent visibility of the characters or devices 2 through the screen 7 when the lamps 3 are turned on, which would tend to confuse or interfere with the clear visibility of the characters or devices 8 of the screen 7 under such conditions. The screen '7 being transparent not only will the light rays from lamps 3 illuminate and render visible the characters or devices 8, (as shown in Fig.

said light, and since in the absence of direct external light rays upon the face of the sign board or base 1 the treated characters or devices 2 become self-luminous, and since the luminosity of said characters or devices 2o'ccurs -i'n back of said screen 7, it follows that the light resulting from said luminosity will shine through the transparent screen 7 so that the characters or devices 2 become visible in place of the characters or devices 8 through which the light rays of such luminous characters 2 pass, the screen providing no bar to, such visibility (as illustrated in Fig. 3 of the drawings). While I have mentioned the use of mesh or netting as the preferable material for the screen 7 I do not wish to confine myself thereto,

since I may employ a sheet of transparent glass, celluloid, or similar material, upon which the characters or devices 8 are inscribed with a transparent paint, stain or varnish, which will be visible by reflection of direct light flooding the face of the screen but which will become visible when light shines or is transmitted through the same and the screen from the rear, so that the luminosity of the characters or devices 2 may consequently readily shine through such a screen. and prepared character or device 8, so as to permit the characters or devices 2 to be clearly visible when viewed through the screen.

Of course, it will be clearly understood that the respective legends formed by the characters or devices 8 upon the screen 7 and by the characters or devices 2 upon the sign board or base 1, may be made complementary one to the other, or they may be totally independent of each other, as to the meaning conveyed thereby.

I am aware that some changes may be made in the general arrangements and combinations of the devices and parts, as well as in the details of the construction of the same without departing from the scope of my present invention as described in the foregoing specification, and as defined in the claims appended hereto. Hence, I do not limit my invention to the arrangements and combinations of said devices and parts as set forth in the foregoing specification, nor do I confine myself to the exact details ofthe construction of said parts as illustrated in the accompanying drawings.

I claim 1. In a sign or the like, a base, characters mounted on said base, said characters being coated with self-luminous preparation, the face of said base being prepared to correspond in color to the color of said coated characters when viewed in external light to render the same substantially invisible in such light, a transparent screen spaced forward of said base, and said screen having inscribed thereon characters visible only by reflection of external light directed upon the face of said screen, said luminous characters on said base being visible through said screen and its characters in the absence of external light directed upon the face of said screen.-

2. In a sign or the like, a base, characters mounted thereon, said characters being treated with a substance adapted to be actuated by exposure to light for rendering the same self-luminous, the face of said base being prepared to correspond in color to the color of said treated characters when viewed in external light to render the same substantially invisible in such light, a lighting means in proximity to said base for shedding actuating light rays'upon said treated characters, and a transparent screen interposed between said lighting means and said base, said screen having inscribed thereon characters visible only by reflection of ex-. ternal light shed by said lighting means, said actuated self-luminous characters on said base being visible through said screen and its characters when said lighting means is shut off.

3. In a sign or the like, a base, characters mounted thereon, said characters being treated with a substance adapted to be actuated by exposure to light for rendering the same self-luminous, the face of said base being prepared to correspond in color to the color of said treated characters when viewed in externallight to render the same substantially invisible in such light, an electric lighting means in proximity to said base for shedding actuating light rays upon said treated characters, an electric circuit for supplying current to said lighting means, an automatic switch mechanism included in said circuit for intermittently turning on and off the actuating light rays of said lighting means, and a transparent screen interposed between said lighting means and said base, said screen having inscribed thereon characters visible only by reflection of external light shed by said li 'hting means, said actuated self-luminous c aracters on said base being visible through said screen and its characters or devices when said lighting means is shut off.

In testimony, that I claimthe invention set forth above I have hereunto set my hand this 13th day of August, 1919.

'FRAZERW. GAY.

Witnesses:

FREDK. "C. FRAENTZEL, BARBARA W. SU'I'I'ERLIN. 

